Eco Freak
by SmallBasilisk28
Summary: Live was the only thought he had when they found him on Wave's shores. With no past to call his own or a way to remember the local blacksmith agrees to raise the boy while passing on his trade. Now he's simply Asura the villages local gear head who spends his free days finding Precursor Artifacts scattered across the Nations while keeping his other side at bay. {Bi!}
1. Chapter 1

_**{words - 4585}**_

 _ **{SmallBasilisk28 here! -I'm back everybody and even better than ever after everything that happened. I've got a new challenge to since I've only had time to think with everything that happened but I have to do a disclaimer again! I own nothing except the OC things I think up.}**_

 _ **{Challenge by coduss.}**_

 _ **{Warning. This story will have Yaoi Male x Male so don't read it if you don't like it. You have been warned.}**_

 _ **{Pairing: Bi Naruto x Tenten ~ Aged Up Inari ~ ?.} {Everyone will be bumped up to their post time-skip ages with Inari bumped up to fourteen.}**_

 _ **{Naruto will have a Yami, little to no chakra to where he can only use the basics like water walking and storage seals but nothing else. His main powers will come from the Dark Eco coursing through his body with fragments of the others mixed in.}**_

 _ **{Warning updates are random and flamers can go jump off a cliff if they don't like the story!}**_

"English!"

 **'Thoughts, Dreams!'**

 _ **-Other-**_

Chapter 1

 **A blood curdling scream escapes a child's lips only to be ignored by the teen tearing into his body and his master watching from the sidelines. "Dark Eco injection cycle complete Lord Orochimaru." The teen informed the man watching him work while pulling off his gloved hands covered in the child's blood. "Bio readings are still normal with no obvious signs of change like you hypothesized even after its two hundred and fifteenth treatment with the different types of Eco."**

 **"Though the pointed ears it gained when the whiskers on its cheeks started fading were intriguing at first your little project is still a failure in the end. Even after wasting what little Eco I was able to acquire you still haven't produced a perfect Kekkei Genkai." Even though Orochimaru sounded disappointed in the projects failure the glint in his eyes told how little he truly cared as long as the eight year old test subject survived for his own series if test later. "I thought you promised me results if I gave you my little pet here to play with Kabuto. Do you know how much trouble it was to steal this thing from the old monkey three years ago and It even has a nice little healing factor to repair any lasting damage. So please explain why your little experiment to replicate Onmy** **ō** **ton isn't working?"**

 **"It seems to be surprisingly resistant to my attempts Lord Orochimaru." Kabuto explained motioning to the monitors on the nearby wall filled with dozens of different graphs while trying to hide the fear in his voice.**

 **"I fear your little experiment is a failure since you seemed to have used up almost all the Eco I'm not currently using myself." Orochimaru pointed out with a twisted smirk on his face that enraged the teen but he knew better than to say anything after witnessing first hand what the Sannin did to any who rose to the challenge.**

 **Reaching down Kabuto grabbed a fist full of red hair staring into the dead eyes of Orochimaru's pet. "You should at least be dead with all of the different Eco I've pumped into your body regardless of a damn healing factor."**

 **"I'm growing bored with watching your pathetic experiments fail one after the other." Kabuto tensed hearing Orochimaru's twisted voice coming from right next to him instead of the other side of the room where his Lord was standing only seconds ago. "But I'll be generous and give you one last attempt to impress me child." Walking past the frozen form of Kabuto the Sannin turned his pet's chin forcing it to meet his gaze. "And do remember what I do with things that fail my expectations."**

 **"I'll make sure the project will succeed next time my Lord." Kabuto replied hearing the underlining threat loud and clear if he failed again.**

 **"See that it does." Watching him walk away with that twisted smirk still in place the teen released a breath he didn't know he was holding before turning to his Lord's pet backhanding it across the face. The dead eyes that stared up at him only served to infuriate the medic in ways he couldn't understand.**

 **"I'll see you later tonight demon." Slamming the child's head down onto the table he left not even bothering to remove all the straps keeping Orochimaru's prized pet pinned to the operating table. And as the door closed behind him Kabuto never noticed the child's dark blue eyes glowing with power as a black hue quickly spreads across them followed by broken, insane laughter.**

Dark blue eyes snap the scarred teen screaming when a figure straddled his chest holding his arms above red hair in an iron grip even as they fought. He wouldn't stop though fighting like a man possessed with primal instincts wired into his every cell screaming to break free, to kill. Writhing, pulling, pushing and snarling like a cornered animal the red head thrashes under the smaller figure's iron grip. Eyes flickering between dark blue and black he slammed the person onto his back with brute strength nearly breaking the bed underneath them in half.

His hand's wrap around the figure's neck and chocolate-colored eyes fill his vision piercing through the thick fog clouding his thoughts with flashes of a forgotten past. "Your safe. Everything's okay Asura so just focus on my voice and take deep breaths." The teen's breathing is coming out panicked and fast but he listens to the figure who relaxes underneath him as the black hue slowly fades from the now identified Asura's eyes. His hands slowly loosen still staring into the figures chocolate-colored eyes now noticing strands of black spiky hair falling down around the other teen's forehead from the struggle that happened a few seconds ago.

The instincts still rage barely contained under the surface as the pieces slowly put themselves back together again within the darkness of his mind. It had happened again. Another nightmare, another fight where he'd left bruises on the smaller teen's already damaged body. "Inari?"

"I'm here Asura." The now named teen murmurs making sure his movements were slow and careful as his hands reach out grasping Asura's shoulder. "It was just another bad dream. We're in your room near the old blacksmith's forge, remember." His hands slid up along the red-head's neck pulling Asura down until their foreheads were touching. "Your safe, there isn't anyone here who wants to hurt you so don't lose control. Don't let it control you."

The fire raging behind his eyes fades until its nothing but embers hearing Inari whispering for him to stay in control. He forces himself to relax repeating a small rhyme in his head that helps him suppress the raging instincts until they were nothing more than whispers in the back of his mind. Wrapping his arms around the black-haired teen Asura's eyes were still focused solely on Inari taking in the sharp smooth angles of his face. "Did you remember anything new this time? Anything besides the room where it all happened?"

"No." Fingers comb through Asura's hair while he closes his eyes trying to hold onto the bits and pieces of his past. "Just glowing needles, scalpels coated in dark sludge, a faceless man who said I was his pet and begging for them to kill me until I shut down." He replied with a shiver trying to block out the insane laughter.

"Anything you need before we have to get up?" Inari murmurs causing Asura to groan remembering what today was. "Yea the old drunk should be back later today with a team from whatever village he managed to sucker with that sob story of his."

"Do you want me to make sure he doesn't die?" Pulling what was left of the covers off of them Asura gets up after double checking the time. It was still early in the morning so only a handful of people would be awake.

"If you're not busy with any major repair jobs later." Inari flops down on top of Asura's pillow while smirking at the black boxers the red-head had on since it still had the heart themed pattern he paid the seamstress to add-on a few days ago. It was the little things in life that made it worth living and seeing as Asura didn't toss them out after finding them Inari took it for the small win it was. "Mom might cry for a few days but we'd finally have an excuse to move away from here since he was the only reason she stayed in that house. I could care less about the drunk after he left my dad to die and only now when they're tired of paying for protection start playing at being Nami no Kuni's heroes with that bridge." It might of sounded cruel but no child could ever walk away the same after watching their father's public beating then execution. So Inari figured he'd be forgiven in the long run for not caring if the grown men who ran away like cowards when his father wanted to fight ended up dead.

"I'll be taking a walk later to let the other guy out for a while so I'll keep my eyes open." Asura replied while pulling on a pair of pants missing the look Inari was giving all the scars that littered his body.

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"So you're the famous Sharingan no Kakashi." The man facing them down said standing atop the large blade stuck halfway through a tree looking down at the rookie team. He was tall and noticeably muscular with pale skin, short spiky black hair, brown eyes, and small eyebrows. Wearing just bandages like a mask over the bottom half of his face and arms along with the large meat clever let Kakashi know exactly who he was facing. "No wonder those idiots failed if they tried taking a target out with you nearby."

"I wasn't expecting to face the Kirigakure no Kijin, Zabuza Momochi today either." Wearing Konoha standard infantry clothing, a flak jacket, dark blue pants, and a long-sleeve shirt Kalashi looked nothing like his picture in the Bingo Book. He looked softer to Zabuza who noted the finger-less gloves with metal plates on the backhand long with a few other hidden weapons but paid them little attention as his gaze flickered over the three Genin guarding his target.

The pink haired girl had on a red qipao dress of all things with short sleeves that had a zipper and white circular designs. She shrank back in fear making him snort dismissively as his eyes took in the tight dark green bike shorts, sandals, and the standard Konoha forehead protector. Spotting the nail polish and eye-shadow almost made him pity the fool since Gato offered extra money to any of his men who could capture a kunoichi for his clients to play with. It wasn't his brat though and Zabuza barely cared about her so he wouldn't shed a tear if the girl was stupid enough to get caught. That's if he even let them live past today once their sensei fell.

His eyes then went over to the one guarding the middle of the formation who was wearing a black, one-pieced combat suit with many small belts adorning his left arm and similar bands around both legs. The forehead protector on the brat's head looked like it hadn't been cleaned in days and only a fool couldn't see the greed in the kid's eyes as he stared at Kubikiribocho with want.

The last one at least had the eyes of a trained shinobi but the kid's choice of clothes could use some work. With short, straight black hair, and dark eyes which contrast with his translucent-looking pale skin the kid looked like one of those civilians from the magazine's Haku reads. Wearing a short black-and-grey jacket with a long right and short left sleeves, high-collared midriff shirt, black pants, shinobi sandals and gloves with his index and thumb fingers exposed, most likely for quicker access to his blood for some type of Fuinjutsu based techniques Zabuza could tell he wasn't a Genin. Seeing the small backpack filled with brushes, scrolls, and ninja ink along with the grip the kid had on the tip-less tantō on his back he'd bet money on one of those Root freaks the other villages talked about. They really weren't that subtle with anything other than assassinations with the whole no emotion thing making it pretty easy to pick them out of a crowd but they at least went down fighting. So Zabuza figured they earned some respect because of that. Not much though since they were still creepy as hell.

Suddenly a slow clapping brought their little stand-off to an end when a voice spoke up. "Now that introductions are out-of-the-way I have a question I've been wanting to ask since you two idiots started this little pissing contest." Walking out of the forest every person in the clearing had their eyes trained on Asura who was wearing a black body armor that looked sort of like it was made from the same special material Anbu gear used, metal plated shoes and black trousers that had reinforced plating around key joints. On his arms are a pair of black bow gloves that look like they've seen better days since the knuckles were worn down and the pale-colored cloak looked even worse looking like it come off a guy who just returned from a war zone.

"Which one, which one of you is the strongest? Whose going to take me on?" Asura's dark blue eyes looked dead to Zabuza who noted the scared look on the bridge builder's face and Kakashi who looked like he just saw a ghost if his wide-eyed gaze was anything to go by.

"Do you even know how to kill someone like me brat?" Zabuza asked trying to gauge this unknown kid since his senses were screaming danger even though the red-head had less chakra than most civilians are born with.

"I've had a really bad morning so I'm letting the other guy out to blow off some steam and you just volunteered to be today's punching bag." Asura replied meeting Zabuza's gaze when the black hue consumed his eyes. "Try not to die to soon or he might go walking around Nami no Kuni's docks looking for some of shorty's thugs to play with again."

Zabuza barely had time to laugh at the kid's claim before he was forced on the defensive when the red-head kicked off the ground in a burst of speed tearing up the dirt behind him. This wasn't a kid he was facing anymore but some kind of demon in human form as they traded blows clashing sword against claws. The demon's hair turned from blood-red to snow-white, his skin and clothes grayed while Zabuza got a front row seat to Asura's demonic transformation. His opponent's eyes were pitch black now with no signs of life at all while the demon's posture altered the longer their fight went on becoming more animalistic and stronger with each passing second. The black claws slicing chunks of metal off of Kubikiribocho were growing longer and sharper with each swing he was forced to block and every few seconds Zabuza kept spotting purple bolts of dark energy expelling from the demon's body.

It was a close range fight the entire time with Zabuza unable to get more than a few scratches in before the demon had him blocking blows meant to crush stone. "Kakashi you need to get us out of here while Asura is focused on bandages over there." The bridge builder sounded almost hysteric to him as he finished the hand signs needed sending a low powered Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu towards Asura who only roared like a demon from lowest pits of hell before smashing through it like paper.

"What are you talking about isn't he here to help us?" The pink haired girl ask making Zabuza wonder what they were teaching the brats these days if they can't even identify friend from foe.

"When Asura goes berserker like this you don't want to be in the immediate area unless you have a death wish." Overhearing them talking instead of running like the bridge builder was trying to get them to do Zabuza cursed his luck at fighting a damn berserker of all things. Making the sign for Haku to provide covering fire he swore to make that fat pig pay for not warning him in advance about the red-head trying to rip his head off.

"I'm not getting paid enough to deal with this shit so the kid's your problem now Kakashi!" Zabuza yelled out going through the hand signs for the Kirigakure no Jutsu when Haku's senbon needles pierced the red heads back hopefully paralyzing or at least slowing Asura down long enough for his escape. "Roooaarr!"

Seeing Tazuna's point after hearing Asura roaring in fury Kakashi ordered his team to disengage no matter how badly he wanted to question the red head. Grabbing their client and Sasuke who looked ready to try his luck Team Seven took to the trees putting as much distance as possible between them and the sounds of a demon ramping.

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Hours later after making it to the edge of Nami no Kuni where Tazuna lived with his daughter Kakashi decided to breach the subject that was Asura during dinner. "Could you tell me a little more about that kid Asura if I heard you correctly?" Tazuna freezes for a brief second mid sip of his sake bottle while his daughter Tsunami's cheerful smile faded hearing about the red-haired teen.

"That poor boy had another incident earlier today didn't he?" Tsunami ask turning to her father who didn't bother hiding the sneer on his face.

"That freak of nature isn't some poor boy." Tazuna bit out turning his head to avoid the glare Tsunami was sending him after slapping the back of his head. "Asura could have easily crushed Gato and his men years ago but didn't because that demon doesn't care anything about our problems." Taking a large gulp of sake the bridge builder started coughing for a second before continuing with his rant. "That freak's been here for eight years now and even took over Isshin's forge after the blacksmith passed away but all he cares about are those pieces of junk he digs up and the slut that used to be my grandson."

"Pity and I even wished you a safe trip and everything before you left to con some shinobi into guarding your drunk ass." A voice called out when the front door slid open causing Sasuke to tense and Sakura to jump slightly when Inari walked in. The teen had on a white almost grey unzipped track suit with strange markings running down the sleeves. Mesh under-armor pressed against his slim body while the pair of black pants, and sandals let the two trained shinobi see the muscles gained from running. "Why are a bunch of Konoha-nin asking about Asura?"

"Just curious that's all." Kakashi replied watching the bridge builder's grandson grab a plate to eat with a look that clearly showed how much the teen believed him. "So what can you tell me about Asura since the two of you seem to be a thing?"

"Not much to tell really since Asura can't remember anything before Isshin found him washed up along the shore looking like he just escaped from his own personal hell on Earth." Inari explained rolling his eyes since Kakashi wasn't the first moron to try getting to Asura through him. "When he was brought into the village Asura's clothes were in shreds, his skin was pale making most of the adults at the time guess he was either an escaped slave who got lucky when his master's ship sunk or a survivor from the Kekkei Genkai purges Kirigakure no Sato were going through at the time." Seeing Inari ripping a piece of meat off the skewer in his left hand Tsunami picked up where her son stopped since she didn't like it when he talked while eating.

"A traveling doctor my late husband flagged down even explained to the mayor and Isshin who volunteered to take Asura in that there was heavy signs of torture with all the scars and drugs she found in his system. It took a few hours and she was able to fix it of course after the old blacksmith paid her but his Keirakukei were to damaged for anything to be done about it."

"That's because she was worse than the old drunk over there and didn't feel like putting in that much work patching up a civilian." Her son snorted tossing his skewer into the wall next to Tazuna's head when he looked ready to open his mouth again. "Dad even told me how the woman didn't feel like doing anything but drinking while her student apologized after she left the room asking where the closest bar was. But your more interested in the other guy instead of a simple gear head like Asura aren't you?" Inari finished Giving the shinobi an amused glance. "I really want to be there when you learn why even Gato's afraid to touch anything Asura calls his own but I've got to get to work."

Finishing his dinner Inari stood up sending a wave over his shoulder as he headed outside only stopping to grab the backpack hanging on a hook near the front door "Thanks for the dinner mom. Let me know when they give up or Krew gets tired of letting a bunch of shinobi play around with Gato and just kills them." Silence filled the room after he left as Team Seven took in everything they heard while their sensei was matching what he knew about Asura with the five-year old ball of sunshine that went missing eleven years ago.

"Who the fuck is Krew? I thought we were just dealing with Gato?" Sasuke demanded pissed that a lowly civilian would dare look down at him like that.

"You are." Tazuna spoke up after he was sure Inari was gone for the afternoon. "Krew wo-."

"Don't you even start with that crazy idea of yours." Tsunami cut in sounding like they've had this argument before. "Gato might be a shipping merchant who got greedy but everyone knows Krew runs things from the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon. None of them would get two steps off of Nami no Kuni before his men killed them if they tried moving going against him."

"Who the hell is Krew!?" Sasuke yelled getting frustrated when they didn't answer him.

"Krew is an infamous crime lord who runs most of the black market, a known drug smuggler, weapons dealer, merchant and a former B-Class shinobi who coordinated black ops missions during the Daisanji Ninkai Taisen for the highest bidder. Reports indicate he owns buildings in multiple villages across the Elemental Nations and has a habit of hiring A to S-Class missing-nin that impress him for unknown missions no one will talk about." Sai explained in a tone most use when dealing with a child while his eyes sharpened at the knowledge a man like that was involved somehow.

"What does this Asura person and your son have to do with someone like that." Sakura ask Tsunami while trying not to break down crying over everything that's happened to her since they took this stupid mission.

"They take odd jobs for Krew every now and again when he needs somebody to make a run into Kaze no Kuni's deserts. I don't know what the boys do there but the pay helps and Gato knows not to try his luck after the last time his men had to deal with the other guy and a really nice priest who enjoyed my cooking when Asura brought him over for dinner."

"Yea except the freak and his little slut didn't bother getting me any protection. Not like I'd take it but there's the principle of the matter." Tazuna slurred after drinking the rest of his sake. "Now I've got to build that damn bridge if I want them bastards off the island for good."

"Please just ignore my father if you can." Tsunami tells Team Seven who watch the bridge builder slump forwards drunk. "As long as you stay away from the slums your students should be fine." Kakashi's eyes hardened knowing what he needed to do if Asura really was his sensei's missing son Naruto Uzumaki.

 _ **Author's Notes -**_

 _ **Yo thanks for reading if you made it this far and I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. There's going to be a bit of bashing on a few people I really don't like**_

 _ **So here's a few things you'll need to know. First things first like I said Naruto has a Yami buried under all that rage waiting to come out and play. Secondly when I say little to no chakra that means he'll only be using basic things that involve wall, water walking and storage. I won't be giving him anything else because Dark Eco with fragments of Red, Blue, Yellow, and Green will make him strong enough.**_

 _ **Yea its going to have some Yaoi and the main reason I'm even using an Aged Up Inari is my roommate likes the pairing for some strange reason. So this pairing is for her but that doesn't mean I won't add my own in the story to even things out because I like Tenten and a few others that might become friends with benefits. Honestly it might be any number of things but the thought of Inari changing in a different way after Kaiza was killed was to good to ignore after her suggestion. Instead of becoming a shut-in hiding how lonely he really was my version learns early on that the strong thrive and the weak die.**_

 _ **Krew and a small handful of others from Jak and Daxter will make an appearance or get mentioned after they get twisted just enough to fit into the Elemental Nations. Krew in particular is going to be needed for a few things later on involving the Precursor artifacts Naruto goes looking for and a weapon or two done the road.**_

 _ **Response - (Thanks for your reviews.)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**{words - 4394}**_

Chapter 2

Kakashi gazed up at the sky as his students trained in the background thinking over the few pieces of information Tsunami and a few brave people around the village could tell him about the mystery known as Asura. **'It all fits but at the same time it doesn't.'**

{Flashback}

 **'The first time I actually met with the poor thing was during my weekly visits to the market when I'd just take Inari for a walk to get out of the house for the afternoon.'** The red-headed nine-year old was struggling to keep up with the work around him as the old blacksmith Isshin unloaded the heavier items from his cart that were for sale. "Mom isn't that the kid dad told me about?" Tsunami turned away from the fruits she was looking at to stare at the boy Inari was pointing out on the other side of the street. Looking closer she could tell it was the same young boy under all the dirt and grim that covered his body from living next to a forge. His skin was still strangely pale like fresh snow even though its been over a year since Isshin took him in but his dark blue eyes were what confirmed it for her. They were still lifeless but had a shine to them Tsunami couldn't place and the mother could only hope it wasn't anything bad after the hell the doctor said he went through.

"Yes sweetie that's the poor boy your father helped save." Her seven-year old son just blinked up at Tsunami wide-eyed before turning to wave at the red-head as she pulled him away to pay for the bag of fruits in her hand. She never noticed the way the red-head's eyes shone with a faint warmth for a brief second when Inari waved at him. **'After that day Inari always asked if he could come to the markets with me or Kaiza whenever we went just to catch a glimpse of the boy his brave father helped.'**

"I'm Inari." His parents smiled watching their son talking with the shy red-headed boy who rarely talked to anyone besides his guardian.

"Isshin-jiji calls me Asura." The red-head replied carefully while adjusting the pieces of wood he was holding in his hands. "He said it's supposed to be the name of a powerful demon who represents wraith and pride."

"That's so cool my mom named my after the god of foxes." Inari replied with a small almost shy smile as they talked. "Do you want to be friends with me?" Neither child noticed the adults nearby watching them with hidden smiles.

 **'It was after that the two of them could be seen together around the village whenever they weren't at school or learning a trade from Kaiza and Isshin.'** A fourteen year old Asura and a twelve-year-old Inari were sitting on top of Kaiza's roof watching the night sky as they talked about different things. Inari liked to let his imagination run wild and wouldn't let up on the idea of Asura being his friend which led to them being almost inseparable even if the slightly older boy barely did anything but listen. Watching from the window the parents listen as Inari tries his best to retail the story he heard the other day while fishing at the docks with his father. "And then the mighty samurai defeated the evil demon army saving the Daimyo's kingdom!" Inari waved his hands around excitedly trying his best to describe everything in detail while he listened on a small genuine smile set firmly in place. "Then she was so thankful the Daimyo gave him a big kiss on the cheek like this see!" Leaning over he placed a quick kiss on Asura cheek causing the red-head's smile to falter as his face started burning red. "Oh are you sick? Should I go find mom she knows how to check for a fever?"

{Flashback End}

He was only able to learn little things like where Asura worked and how adorable they were as children but nothing on whatever the other guy was besides unstoppable. It looked a lot like Orochimaru's handiwork but none of the people he asked would give him a straight answer or tell him anything depending on who was around them at the time. All Kakashi really knew was that this other side of Asura whatever it really was could make Zabuza retreat and had enough power to kill dozens of Gato's mercenaries when the corrupt shipping merchant was first trying to take over Nami no Kuni. How a massacre like that could have escaped the notice of Konoha he'd never know since dozens of ships and mercenaries getting torn to pieces by one child with anger problems should have grabbed every major villages attention. The only thing he could think of was that Krew was behind it somehow but the reason why eluded his grasp for the moment.

"When are we going to look into that freak and his civilian toy Hatake?" Sasuke demanded making him want to slap his forehead at being stuck with a brat as spoiled as him.

"Yea he just can't come in and steal all of Sasuke's glory!" Sakura agreed like the loyal fangirl she was while Sai watched the thee of them from the tree he was leaning against while they were taking a break.

"They're not apart of the mission so leave them alone." Seeing the pair seconds away from complaining his eye hardened into a glare that shut them up. "I'll write both of you up for insubordination the second you even go near the blacksmith's forge." Kakashi really didn't need either of them starting something with Asura before the letter he sent back to Konoha was seen by the Hokage.

"I'll have the civilian council overturn it the second we get back to Konoha so go ahead." Sasuke replied with a smug grin that had him itching to just smack the little brat but their was always the second option.

"Yea, yea you could." Sasuke's smug grin only grew. "But they can't do shit about the Shinobi side of the council or the Hokage who can kick you from the program for refusing to follow my orders." The brat's grin faded into a scowl as he stormed back to his tree to keep on training ignoring Sakura who was trying to cheer him up but that wasn't the worst of Kakashi's problems. Turning to face Sai who was still watching them with that fake smile in place he knew for a fact the Root operative sent a letter of his own back to the village but had no clue which one would get to Konoha first.

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At the same time on the other the island the pair of teenagers could be seen inside the blacksmith's old shop with Inari tending to Asura's injuries. It was a pattern the two of them fell into after they started doing a few odd jobs for Krew where Asura would take the bulk of the fighting by himself when mercenaries or the occasional group of Shinobi would try stopping them from recovering the artifacts they were looking for. Then Inari would care for him and fix Asura up again. It started off as his way to say thank you for everything the older male did to help his family out even after everything Tazuna did and said while drunk to make him leave only to evolve into something more with neither one of them realizing it at the time.

"You don't need to waste your medicine on me." Asura said stripping off his shirt to let Inari get a better look at the slash marks on his back. "Most of this will be gone in a few hours anyway thanks to the other guy." Inari just ignored him while dipping his fingers into an ointment his mom taught him to make before he started applying it to the worst ones his hands could reach.

"We both know by now that the other guy only takes care of the life threatening ones. Besides I might like playing doctor with you. Kami knows I get enough practice with the way the both of you fight." Inari replied while rubbing the ointment over Asura's injuries channeling chakra into the tips of his fingers causing them to glow a faint green making him smile knowing the little Iryo Ninjutsu he knew could be put to good use. While watching the injury stitch itself close under his fingers Inari only wished he could do more but both sides of the red-head were a little to over-protective when it came to the small handful of people they cared about. Which was just him and his mother for the most part after the old blacksmith passed on in his sleep.

"If it's not life threatening then that only proves my point about you wasting your medicine." Asura said while his ears were twitching to every little sound coming from outside the small shop he inherited.

"Yea, yea just shut up and let me finish playing doctor while you be the silent patient you are. It's the least I could do when most of the money we make goes to help my mom anyway." Inari replied with a glint in his eyes seeing the small smile on Asura's face as he worked to bandage the ones his basic medical skills couldn't heal all the way. "Besides it's not like you can help the fact everything out there wants to eat you almost as bad as I do." The roguish smile on his face had him internally cheering when he noticed the slight red tinting the red head's cheeks when Asura turned to glance back at him for a second before resting his gaze on the item they found a few days ago.

The old-looking orb they dug up during their run to the desert was a floating egg-shaped Precursor artifact made out of old metals that were hard to come by nowadays. With the orange-red sheen it had to it, uncommon to most of the gold-colored Precursor metal artifacts both of them knew it would fetch a good price depending on the mood Krew was in after his little talk later this afternoon. The last few weeks Gato started growing bolder with each move he made making more of a nuisance of himself then usual and now that shinobi from Konoha were getting involved Inari was just waiting for the order to kill the man to be sent their way so his father's killer could get what was coming to him finally.

Thinking about the Precursor artifact while Inari patched him up had Asura's mind drifting off to the few times he could remember with the old man.

{Flashback}

"Did you, did you go all the way to the mines just to find that for me?" Isshin ask letting the cane supporting him fall to the side seeing the child in front of him covered in dirt and bruises holding up a small piece of iron.

"Teach me how to become a blacksmith as good as you were." Asura declared a small fire visible behind those cold uncaring eyes as he held up the piece of iron. "I know I'm a freak who can't control when I black out and hurt mean people but I still want to learn if you'll teach me. I'll become the best blacksmith in the world if you think I can do it jiji?"

"You're not a freak Asura. You're my child and you can do anything you want to do with your life." The old man said pulling the eight year old into a hug ignoring Asura's eyes watering even as he flinched from the close contact.

{Flashback End}

"You took a demon like me in and taught me how to be a blacksmith when others thought I should have been sent away after the first time the other guy showed himself and I'll never be able to repay you for everything you did for me Isshin-jiji." Asura whispered staring at the Precursor artifact knowing even though it wasn't the one Isshin dreamed of finding he was still one step closer to his goal. "I'll find the artifact you were looking for jiji. I'll find it and make you proud of me when I do."

"What where you whispering Asura?" Inari ask after he finished bandaging the last of his injuries.

"Nothing important." Asura told him before planting a quick chaste kiss on Inari's lips. "Lets go meet up with Krew. They said he was coming to Nami no Kuni personally to address the problems Gato was stirring up so hopefully he'll take away the greedy little bastard's protection."

"Hopefully is right. I've been waiting for the day we get the green light to kill that man and Krew knows it to." Inari replied pocketing the Precursor artifact while Asura pulled on his shirt. "Lets go to work."

42-42-564

A few minutes later after walking through the slums of Nami no Kuni the pair walked through the doors of the Hip Hog Heaven Saloon. The interior is decorated with posters of exotic dancers and dozens of trophies gathered by some of the missing-nin Krew employed over the years helped attract new customers and clients who heard about it making them a signature part of the bar. In the center of the main room was a wrestling ring where customers could place bets on the fights Krew held every month. The ring itself had a few other purposes too with a pole that came up through the center for the exotic dancers to use when they came in later tonight. In the back of the building was the main bar behind which various beverages were served and inventory were stored. Then along the walls were booths that can seat ideally four people each.

But neither of them paid the people around them any attention as they passed through the doors in the back of the bar to where they knew Krew would be waiting for them. "Did your fool of a boss actually think he could get away with attacking my ships?" Moving past the guards Krew kept around him at all times they came upon the sight of their boss talking down to two of Gato's mercenaries. Krew was an uncommonly large man with acute obesity and probably every kind of health problem that came with being over five hundred pounds. Despite that his legs were remarkably small and gaunt, revoking the possibility of walking or standing on his own without aid and therefore has to use a hoverchair-type device which supports his body and also shines some sort of light over his head. Neither of them knew how it worked only that Krew kept a Fuinjutsu master on the payroll who came around every few weeks to reapply the seals needed to keep the chair mobile. Their boss was bald and had pig-like facial features, with stubby ears and an obese vexed facial expression as well as many piercings and wore a light green tank shirt along with what he called a silk suit. Though honestly most of the people who saw him thought it was a tarp with holes cut into the sides but no one was stupid enough to say it out loud unless they felt like dying slowly.

"Fuck you fat ass! Me and Waraji would die before giving up a meal ticket like Gato." Zori snarled only to be struck in the back of the head by one of Krew's guards after the man waved his hand. Getting a closer look at the pair Asura could see the one with the mouth on him was a light-skinned man with bluish-white hair and black eyes. Lined markings are tattooed under his eyes. He was wearing a dark purple hat on this head, the top of which extends far beyond the top of his head, a blue jacket with multiple pockets and a blue handled katana used to be tied to his waist but now it was over in the nearby table along with any other weapons the pair might have had on them.

The other Waraji if he heard right is tall in stature wearing an eye-patch over his right eye and has brown hair which he parts in three, finishing in an elaborate topknot. He has an intricate tattoo that seemingly stretches across his entire left side and left right, inner thigh, as well as a stitched scar on the left side of his forehead, and the left side of his mouth. Waraji had on what seems to be a loose-fitting kimono, albeit not in the traditional manner as the top half of the outfit falls around his waist leaving his upper body exposed which was stupid to them since he was rumored to be one of Gato's lieutenants. He also wears bandages wrapped around his waist and simple sandals.

"You see now that right there was the dumbest thing you could have done boy." Krew said with a sneer on his face while taking a large gulp of the sake one of the servers brought him. "Now I'm going to have to take my time breaking you and that'll just make me even madder. So what do you suppose I should do with you." It wasn't a question at all and by the fearful look on Waraji's face he knew they weren't leaving here alive. "I could just chop off your limbs, rip out your intestines and have some of my men take turns riding you down the river like some kind of demonic meat toboggan from hell but that would mean I'd need to hire a Yuki to make me some ice first."

"You hear that Asura. I knew Krew would use my suggestion some day but I always hoped it would be used on Gato someday instead of his lieutenants." Inari crowed with a grin on his face walking forward to sling his arm over the bound Waraji's shoulder. "Just try getting that image out of your head of Krew here grabbing your entrails like the reins of a sleigh as he streaks through the freshly powdered snow a Yuki will make for him leaving behind a bloody trail of bile and gore while your eyes beg the unanswered question. Why?"

"Oh, Kami!" Waraji was shaking now as he stared into the uncaring eyes of Asura after hearing everything Inari just said. "I'll tell you everything you want to know just don't kill me."

"Shut up you idiot. Gato already has shinobi to kill this fat pig and his men so keep your damn mouth shut until he sends them to get us out of here!" Zori yelled trying to sound brave though everyone could see the damp spot spreading across his pants.

"If you mean Zabuza and his little weapon then they've already ran away from Asura here instead of fighting my boy." Krew cut in looking over to the horrified form of Waraji before floating back to the center of the room. "So I've got a little deal for the both of you. We're going to play who talks first and the winner gets a real special prize." **'A quick death.'** Was the thought running through everyone's heads. "The loser however gets to die tortured to death thinking he was brave before I use Inari's suggestion just for the hell of it. Then just to make sure anyone stupid enough to cross me gets the message I'll have my men find your immediate family and kill them before making their way up your family tree." With a smug grin on his face he looked between the two. "Now who wants to talk to uncle Krew." Both men where shaking now with Zori trying and failing to keep up a brave front while Waraji was openly crying.

"All right the lot of you listen up!" The room quieted down ready to listen to the crime lord's orders except for Asura and Inari who looked like they could care less. "I've let Gato have his fun trying to terrorize the locals for a while but now that shinobi are getting involved its time I dealt with the problem once and for all." After saying that he snapped his fingers causing two of his guards to drag the bound forms of Zori and Waraji off for a 'chat' ignoring their screams for mercy. "So spread the word that after today its open season on any man foolish enough to sign on with Gato. I don't care how you get it done but I'll pay top dollar for the heads of every man stupid enough to cross me with the price doubled if they suffer." The men cheered as they left leaving only Krew behind with two of his guards and the pair of teens he used as runners.

"Now lets talk business boys." Krew said with a greedy look in his eyes when Asura tossed him the Precursor artifact they found earlier.

"The map your man gave us led to a small cache of artifacts just like that one." Asura informed him holding up an aged scroll in his left hand. "You get the rest after our payment."

Krew just laughed before waving one of the guards forward with a case in his hands. "That's why I like dealing with you two boys. You're smarter than most of the idiots I hire and only care about what you can get out of life." He was still laughing when Asura traded the scroll in his hand with the guard's case. "I'd adopt the two of you in a second if I didn't think you'd try gutting me in my sleep the minute I let my guard down."

"Now get out of here and bring me Gato's head."

42-42-564

Hours later after scouting out the docks under Gato's control and his base of operations the pair could be found in Inari's room ignoring the shinobi that were downstairs eating dinner after wasting their time training all day. Inari dipped farther into his pillow closed his eyes to the sounds of Asura at the foot of his bed working on an old clock the baker in the village wanted him to fix. The sounds of tools taking apart the clock piece by piece was the only thing Inari paid attention to while everything else around him he blocked out in his detached state. "He'll be leaving his base to deal with your grandfather and the shinobi in three days when the bridge is scheduled to be finished so that leaves us with two options. Either I let the other guy out to play for a few hours or we wait for him to leave and get him on the bridge where there's no place for him to hide." Asura said out loud as he worked already knowing Inari wanted the man's head.

"You already know I want to kill Gato personally so we'll wait for him to show up at the bridge in three days." Inari replied cracking open his eyes to stare at the case leaning against his desk knowing the weapon inside of it would get its first taste of combat in a few days. "We don't need the other guy for this fight but other than that do what you want to Gato's men." He finished wiggling his right foot so his toes rubbed against Asura's back grinning when the red head arched forward slightly.

"I'll try not to end it to fast." Inari heard the red head say followed by the bed dipping when Asura leaned back using his body as a pillow.

"I'm not your pillow." Inari grumbled without any heat behind it feeling Asura adjust himself to get more comfortable.

"Your warm and besides I think I kill enough people for you so let me enjoy this." Opening his eyes slightly with a tired smile on his face Inari glanced down at Asura when he felt his hands wrapping around his waist before closing them again. Inari knew that in three days everything would change when he finally killed the man who executed his dad and ruined his mom's life. The only question was for the better or worse.

 _ **Author's Notes -**_

 _ **It's trickling in slowly but I've been getting a few people interested in my newest story here. Hopefully I'll get more after this chapter.**_

 _ **I've got a handful of people messaging me about it but like I said in the last chapter everybody was aged up. Inari aged up to 14 while everyone else is their ages after the time skip.**_

 _ **Krew's chair shouldn't be that hard to overlook with everything else I've read out there other people have had Naruto pull of with seals. Other than that I don't see that much more to give out for this chapter regarding notes so I hope you liked it.**_

 _ **Response - (Thanks for your reviews.)**_

 _ **HeartlessNobody13: That's one of the reasons why I like using side characters since they only get shown a few times leaving you a lot of room to work with.**_

 _ **Super Guest-Chan: I already replied to a few people who sent me PMs because of the pairing but the three people I have in mind are more friends with benefits then real pairings so yea I could have Inari being the dominating a couple of times.**_


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